W97M.Melissa.V

As its primary payload, the virus attempts to use Microsoft Outlook to email a copy of the infected document to up to 40 other people. When a user opens or closes an infected document, the virus first checks to see if it has done this mass emailing once before by checking the following registry key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\ with an "MP?" value.

If this key has a value "MP" set to the value "...by 22" then the mass emailing has been done previously from the current machine. The virus will not attempt to do the mass mailing a second time if it has already been done from this machine.

If it does not find the registry entry, it will do the email payload just like W97M.Melissa.A. The difference is that it only sends to up to 40 addresses, the subject line is "My Pictures USERNAME" where USERNAME is taken from a Microsoft Word setting, and the email message is now blank.

The second payload now replaces the currently selected text of the document with:

Opening Microsoft Outlook...
Hint:  Get Norton 2000 not McAfee 4.02

It also displays a message box with the following message:

Please Check Your OutLook Inbox E-Mail!

This variant also has a malicious payload that attempts to delete files from the root directory of drives F, H, I, L, M, N, O, P, Q, S, X, and Z.

Recommendations

Symantec Security Response encourages all users and administrators to adhere to the following basic security "best practices":

• Use a firewall to block all incoming connections from the Internet to services that should not be publicly available. By default, you should deny all incoming connections and only allow services you explicitly want to offer to the outside world.
• Enforce a password policy. Complex passwords make it difficult to crack password files on compromised computers. This helps to prevent or limit damage when a computer is compromised.
• Ensure that programs and users of the computer use the lowest level of privileges necessary to complete a task. When prompted for a root or UAC password, ensure that the program asking for administration-level access is a legitimate application.
• Disable AutoPlay to prevent the automatic launching of executable files on network and removable drives, and disconnect the drives when not required. If write access is not required, enable read-only mode if the option is available.
• Turn off file sharing if not needed. If file sharing is required, use ACLs and password protection to limit access. Disable anonymous access to shared folders. Grant access only to user accounts with strong passwords to folders that must be shared.
• Turn off and remove unnecessary services. By default, many operating systems install auxiliary services that are not critical. These services are avenues of attack. If they are removed, threats have less avenues of attack.
• If a threat exploits one or more network services, disable, or block access to, those services until a patch is applied.
• Always keep your patch levels up-to-date, especially on computers that host public services and are accessible through the firewall, such as HTTP, FTP, mail, and DNS services.
• Configure your email server to block or remove email that contains file attachments that are commonly used to spread threats, such as .vbs, .bat, .exe, .pif and .scr files.
• Isolate compromised computers quickly to prevent threats from spreading further. Perform a forensic analysis and restore the computers using trusted media.
• Train employees not to open attachments unless they are expecting them. Also, do not execute software that is downloaded from the Internet unless it has been scanned for viruses. Simply visiting a compromised Web site can cause infection if certain browser vulnerabilities are not patched.
• If Bluetooth is not required for mobile devices, it should be turned off. If you require its use, ensure that the device's visibility is set to "Hidden" so that it cannot be scanned by other Bluetooth devices. If device pairing must be used, ensure that all devices are set to "Unauthorized", requiring authorization for each connection request. Do not accept applications that are unsigned or sent from unknown sources.
• For further information on the terms used in this document, please refer to the Security Response glossary.

Summary